Teammates,
Thank you for providing valuable feedback as we continue to build upon IPPS-A together. The FMD team and I appreciate your continued engagement.
Recently, we achieved an incredible milestone—1 million distinct users to IPPS-A! We could not have done this without your continued support and enthusiasm for this system. However, there is still work to be done.
As we continue to make progress, I want to share with you some updates, guidance, and resources:
New IPPS-A Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) Recertification Feature
On the tentative date of
17 October 2024, IPPS-A’s Pay-Absences-Incentive Pay-Deduction (PAID) page will feature a new Military Pay (MilPay) Action Requests function, allowing users to submit for BAH Recertification (DA 5960).
This action request will produce a document that may be routed to a Service Member’s (SM) company-level Commander for certification or delegated to the first commissioned officer in the Soldier’s chain of command.
Once approved, the documentation will be automatically sent to the Personnel Electronic Military Records System (iPERMS) from IPPS-A. Additionally, the SM will receive email reminders about upcoming recertification deadlines.
The IPPS-A BAH Recertification process is
only to be used to
recertify current BAH entitlements — any changing of BAH compensation must still be processed through the local finance office. To do this the HR Professional must send the copy of the IPPS-A generated BAH Recertification to finance for action. Changes to BAH compensation will also automatically send documentation to iPERMS.
For further assistance, please review the
BAH Recertification Job Aid.
Switchover/Switchback Exercise
IPPS-A needs your assistance! We will be executing a server switchover/switchback exercise to test the system's ability to change from primary to secondary data center during a potential disruptive event or real-world disaster.
The exercise will occur at
1800 ET on Thursday, 24 October through 1845 ET on Saturday, 26 October 2024.
This is a federally mandated annual event designed to improve the system. For more information or to participate, please see details on
S1NET.
IPPS-A is your weapon system! Together, we can ensure the Army is ready for anything. Please plan accordingly and thank you for your participation.
Talent Management (TM) Sub-Categories (SUBCATs)
TM Closed (CLSD) Market Unit transactions involve entering unit preferences, requesting to add positions, and prioritizing vacant positions. This SUBCAT is intended for those users involved in the Mission Essential Requirements (MER) process for their units. Typically, MER processes include the Commander, CSM, XO, and/or S1.
To obtain a TM CLSD Market Unit SUBCAT, users with Commander, Manager, or HR Professional SUBCATs must submit Access Requests for: (Category) HR Professional, (SUBCAT) TM CLSD Market Unit. Commander/Managers DO NOT have to take the HR Professional training to gain access to this SUBCAT.
Please refer to the
Talent Management Closed Market Unit - Quick Sheet. This resource will help guide you through the process and provide you with training resources.
Revocation/Promotion Personnel Action Requests (PARs)
When the Special Promotion PAR (PS Form) migrated to the newer version (Activity Guide), some Members in the field encountered issues with an incorrect or “blank” Primary Military Occupational Specialty (PMOS) on the IPPS-A-generated order while attempting to revoke or amend orders (stopping to process).
We have corrected this error. If the original promotion/demotion transaction is missing the PMOS, the system will use the transaction effective date from the Member’s record. This successfully allows promotion/demotion amendments and revocations when the transaction lacks PMOS.
Absence Attachments
To enhance system stability and improve latency, attachments added to Absence requests that are greater than 60 days old from the absence end date have been removed from IPPS-A. This also included attachments for Special and Incentive Pay requests after 60 days after the end date of the transaction.
Incorrect Clearance Data on Soldier Talent Profiles (STPs)
We have noted that that some STPs may be showing incorrect security clearance data.
If a Soldier’s security clearance information is not correct in one or more fields, please contact the HRC at
usarmy.knox.hrc.mbx.fsd-security@army.mil to request a correction. The Soldier, S1, or S2 can make these requests in an encrypted email.
In the email, please provide (1) the Army Component, (2) last, first, and middle Name, and (3) full SSN (the email box is setup for encryption). For example, “Active Duty, Doe, John A., 123-45-6789.”
If you are sending an unencrypted message, please include a DoD Identification Number instead of an SSN.
Once the request is submitted, please allow 24–48 hours for the data to update in the STP.
PayPer Mismatch Report
Commanders, please remember to review the PayPer Mismatch Report monthly. This helpful tool enables you to ensure your Soldiers are paid on-time and accurately every time. Learn how by checking out the user productivity kit (UPK) in the system at
https://hr.ippsa.army.mil/upk/onl_help/Publishing%20Content/PlayerPackage/data/tpc/846677ac-7468-4e1d-9ba4-523c0f19bce4/lmstart.html?dhtml&Guid=846677ac-7468-4e1d-9ba4-523c0f19bce4.
Resources
Join the
Drive the Change channel on MS Teams to get the latest updates as well as
New Release Training on Fridays (following a release). You may access the channel here:
https://dod.teams.microsoft.us/l/channel/19%3adod%3a1fc38b9ba1714261a5e2e78bddbb92d3%40thread.tacv2/1.%2520Drive%2520the%2520Change?groupId=a0f79218-9101-4c6c-863b-84c8c14309e9&tenantId=fae6d70f-954b-4811-92b6-0530d6f84c43. If you missed a release update, please visit the
Drive the Change page for links to recordings and slides.
We are still holding
virtual Over the Shoulder Support (OTSS) and
Reinforcement Training. For dates and times, please visit:
https://ipps-a.army.mil/Drive-the-Change/.
Listen in to the
IPPS-A Podcast to hear from our Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) and learn what’s going on with the program.
Also, check out our IPPS-A Coffee Tawk series, where IPPS-A subject matter experts respond to your questions and comments — it is casual, concise, and full of facts. You may find these posted to our website, YouTube and social media pages.
For additional information and resources, visit our website at
https://ipps-a.army.mil/.
Keep driving the change we need in our Army!
v/r,
Becky
Rebekah S. Lust
COL, AG
IPPS-A FMD Director
IPPS-A website:
https://ipps-a.army.mil/
IPPS-A Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/armyippsa/
IPPS-A YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/c/IPPSA
IPPS-A Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/usarmy_ippsa/
IPPS-A S1Net:
https://www.milsuite.mil/book/community/spaces/apf/s1net/ipps-a